Research also reveals that consumers are particularly susceptible to account takeover. Account takeover, which involves a criminal fraudulently using another person’s credit or debit card, accounted for 40% of all cases of identity fraud reported last year.

Fraudsters are developing new ways to take advantage of information technology, Sarah Blaney, identity fraud expert from CPP says. “We have seen a notable increase in account takeover, as criminals struggle to open up new fraudulent accounts and take the easier option by targeting existing ones. The proliferation of phishing e-mails, social engineering scams and malware are all designed to extract sensitive financial information from the cardholder in order to access the account and defraud the individual.”

CIFAS’ 2009 Fraud Trends report reveals that there were over 85 000 reported cases of impersonation and over 24 000 people were victims of account takeover. This is a 32% increase on last year’s figures. CPP is urging consumers to check their accounts for any suspicious activity.

CPP's Sarah Blaney says, “We remind consumers that all a fraudster needs is a name, address and date of birth, so it’s vital that account holders look after their personal information and check their statements regularly.”